Process for recovery of vanadium.



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

BYRAMJI D; SAKLATWALLA, OF BRIDGEVILLE, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR 'TO THE Y AMERICAN VANADIUM 00., F PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

rnocnss non. RECOVERY or VANADIUM.

No Drawing Patented Mar. 12, 1912.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, BYRAMJI D. SAxLA'r- WALLA, of Bridgeville, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Im rovements in Processes for Recovery of anadium; and I do'he'reby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

1 This invention relates to the extraction of vanadium from material containing the same.

One object of my present invention is to provide an efficient method of extracting vanadium free from other metals from ore or other material containing the same.

A further object is to provide a method whereby all vanadium-bearing ores can be treated with high extraction efficiency, ir-

respective of how the vanadium values are present, either as vanadate, sulfid, oxid, or as salt in combination with any acid.

With these objects in view the invention consists in certain novel steps in the method for the extraction of vanadium, as hereinafter set forth and pointed out in the claims.

My improved method is carried out 'substantially as follows: The ore is ground to about -8O mesh and then treated with a suitable dissolving acid, mostly dilute sulfuric acid, 1:1, in a suitable vessel and the mass heated and agitated by steam. The solution thus obtained, containing all the vanadium and other soluble metals originally present in the ore, is decanted into a settllng tank and thus separated from the insoluble gangue material. The solution, after settling, is pumped into a precipitating tank where it is boiled with steam and a calculated quantity ofa strong oxidizing a ent is added to it, causing precipitation 0% all the vanadium in the form of a hydrated red oxid. As oxidizing precipitating agents I employ an oxy-acid compound of chlorin, such as sodium or potassium chlorate. Al'so gaseous oxidizers can be -used; for instance, the gas obtained by the action of hydrochloric acid on potassium or sodium chlorate and generated in a separate vessel and passed through the solution. The precipitation can be efi'eeted in the solution with a large excess of free acid or after neutralizing it with an alkali. The precipitate consisting of practically pure hydrated vanadlc acid is separated from the supernatant liquid b filtration or decantation and washed to tree it from the same. The washed precipitate is-then dried at a temperature sufficiently high to eliminate all hydrate water, thus leaving a product con sistrng of practically pure V 0 which ma be reduced to the metal by any of the ordinar ly known processes of reduction. The supernatant, liquid after removal of the hydrated precipitate can be re-used to partly extract fresh ore in the first stage of the operation. The oxidizing agent present in this liquor, for instance chlorin, is especially beneficial in the case of extract-ing sulfureted ores where it helps to oxidize the sulfids, converting them 1nto sulfates and thus bringing them more readily into solution. The liquor can thus be used over and over again for a number of times until it gets saturated with salts of the other metallic constituents of the ore, when it may be used to recover these constituents as byproducts. I

Having fully described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters-Patent, is:

1. A method of extracting vanadium from ore, consisting in dissolving the soluble constituents of the ore, and then subjecting the solution to an oxidizing agent to precipitate the vanadium, free from all other metals.

2. A method for recovering vanadium from material containing the same, consist-' vore to the action of an acid to dissolve the soluble constituents and precipitating the vanadium free from all other metals out of this strongly acid solution by means of an oxidizing agent.

4. A method 'of extracting vanadium from ores, which consists in subjecting the ore to the action of a dissolving acid, neutralizing the resultant solution, and then precipitating the vanadium free from ,all other metals contained in the solution, with an oxidizing agent.

5. A method for extracting vanadium from ores,- which consists in dissolving the vanadium free "from all other metals by soluble constituents of the ore, treating the passing through the solution an oxidizing solution thus made, with an xy-acid comgas,

pound of chlorin to precipitate the vana- In testimony whereof, I have signed'thi's 5 dium free'fromsll other metals contained specification 1n the presence of two sub- 15 in said solution. scribing witnesses.

6. A method for extracting vanadium BYRAMJI D; SAKLATWALLA.- fr0ni ores, which consistsin subjecting the Witnesses: i

ore to the action -of an acid to dissolve the JAMES C, ;GRAY' 10 soluble constituents and precipitating the JASLAFFLANNERY. 

